Free Passion and Pain (Dancers and Divas) by Kathy Petrakis Page A

piped in. “Why don’t the altos sing it without Elena and if you notice any difference, you’ll know it’s Elena.”
    Thank you, Veronika.
    “Very good , Veronika,” Ms Lazowski said.
    Letitia closed her eyes and smiled as the altos sang without Elena. “Ah. That was much better.”
    That was such a load of crap and they both knew it. But Letitia had made her point.
    “Well, maybe you can work on that song Elena,” Ms Lazowski said.
    “Sure, Ms Lazowski,” Elena said through clenched teeth.
     
    Elena was relieved when it was lunch time. She was too humiliated to stay back and help Veronika pack her drums, so she bolted out and waited for them at their lunch spot.
    “Bad day at choir?” Sebastien said when he saw her. Elena placed her chin in her hands. “Why do you keep doing it to yourself?”
    “Because Jay is there?” Frankie said.
    “Jay? So what’s the deal with this Jay guy? Are you and he …?” Sebastien said teasingly.
    “No! I said it before, there is no me and him!”
    “Go on, you can tell us.”
    “He’s a good- looking guy who can play a few tunes. They’re a dime a dozen at Montacrue. You know Frankie, she exaggerates everything.” Elena glared at Frankie and continued to sulk.
    Veronika raised her eyebrow at Elena but she brushed it off. Why couldn’t everyone leave her alone?
    She continued nibbling at her food in silence.
    “So what’s that idea you wanted to tell me about, anyway?” Veronika asked Sebastien.
    Sebastien’s face lit up. “Well, there are a couple of students from acting class who were hoping to work a new script. Most of them didn’t get lead roles so they wanted to do a bit more than just drama classes.”
    “Right.”
    “So I thought maybe you’d like to write a short play for us that we can perform and put into that Short Play competition you were talking about?”
    “Did you have a topic in mind?” Veronika asked.
    “Not yet, but we can think about it. We’re doing some improvisation classes after rehearsals with Miss Hammersmith. We could use that time to improvise a script.”
    “Liking it, liking it,” Veronika said, nodding her head. “Yeah, let’s give it a try.”
    “You should try some of these improv classes, Elena. You know, learn to be spontaneous,” Sebastien said.
    “I can be spontaneous,” Elena said. He smiled. “Sometimes.” Sebastien’s smile grew broader.
    “Fine, a little improvisation wouldn’t hurt.”
    Sebastien laughed hard. “You’re so easy, Elena.”
    She didn’t want to smile but Sebastien looked so pleased with himself, Elena couldn’t resist.
    The bell rang and Leon motioned to Elena.  “Come on Juliet, time for rehearsals.” Elena rose reluctantly, noticing Frankie squirming in her seat. She probably hated this set up as much as she did. Elena was going to get up close and personal with Leon while Sebastien got intimate with Frankie and Letitia. This was not the way it was supposed to be!
     
     

Eleven
     
    Winter was approaching and it had been several months now that Elena had been working on her technique for her contemporary class. She spent hours after school attending ballet classes the school offered, stretching and pushing her body to the maximum. And yet, each rehearsal she still felt inferior to the other girls.
    “Elena, I think you should take a break. Don’t be so harsh on yourself. You’ll get it,” Ms Fontaine said, after Elena had spent a half hour repeating one turn again and again and not getting it. Though Elena rarely cried, she went to the corner, held her towel with her hands and buried her face in it.
    She breathed in and out slowly, determined to get control back. “I can do this! I know I can!” she told herself. She stood with determination and continued with the exercise but it still was not working. By the end of class, Elena slumped her shoulders and left dragging her feet.
    As she approached the changing room, Elena heard a small voice behind her. “I could help